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Ahhh Holiday Gift Exchanges.  You either love them or your hate them, am I right?  Take a peak at my blog post below if you struggle as much as I do when trying to find a nice gift for under $20.00 that the recipient will actually love.

You know what I’m talking about;  It all starts with that group text message to the entire family, usually from someone who is gung-ho ho ho about Christmas, asking the dreaded question:

“Would anyone be interested in doing a small holiday gift exchange this year?” 

…. no one answers, and you feel bad so you reluctantly reply;

“Sounds like fun! We’d love to.”

And so now you’ve committed to finding not one but two gifts (because, well..husband; need I say more?). 

Let’s be completely honest; one of those two gifts will be some sort of alcoholic beverage. But the question we’re all wondering “is it okay to show up with two booze related trading gifts”? 

Well.. if it’s not, don’t worry.  I got you, girl!

THE PERFECT TRADING GIFT – DIY & UNDER $20.00

What you’ll need:

Masking tape

Scissors

Water colour paper

Paint Brushes

Water

Paint (pink, orange, yellow green, and white)

Frame

Single letter stamps

Ink pad

*I’ll be completely honest; I had most of these items on hand (found in my kids craft box) but if you’re starting from scratch all of these items can be found at Michaels craft store.  The only item I bought new was the frame; which you can also find at Michaels for $10.00.

How to do it:

1. Take your masking tape and square off a section in the middle of the water colour paper.
2. Mix your water colours; You’ll need:

      Yellow – mix a small amount of yellow with 2-3 drops of water

      Light Peach – mix small amounts of yellow, pink, orange and white with a 3-5 drops of water

      Dark Peach – mix small amounts of yellow, pink, orange and white with a 2-3 drops of water

      Green – mix a small amount of green with 2-3 drops of water

3. Take your paint brush with the yellow paint and loosely paint an imperfect circle; let completely dry – see step 1
4. Take your paint brush with the lighter peach colour and paint a smaller imperfect circle inside of the yellow circle; let completely dry – see step 2
5. Take your paint brush with the darker peach colour and loosely paint a 1/2 moon shape within the light peach circle – see step 3
6. You’re almost there! Lastly take your green paint and paint a leaf (or two) at the top of your freshly painted peach – see step 4  VOILA!
7. Next, bring out your stamps and add the words “ Keep it peachy” to your painting – see finished product

8.  Let your paint completely dry and put your masterpiece into the frame.

And there you have it; a beautiful trading gift that someone will absolutely love for under $20.00!  Keep following along as I share more tips and tricks to get you through the holidays!